“So the swine wasn’t just following orders,” Lysander said.
“Well, Sire, he can plead that he was,” Forrest said. “He did have orders. I’d have questioned them, myself, but he can plead that he considered them valid.”
“So what’s his status?’
“Karantov has sent him up to the space station under guard. Lieutenant Colonel Farley is confirmed as commander of the 77th. My guess is that Ciotti will be sent off on Patton.”
Lysander turned to Owensford. “General, I want you to request that Karantov turn him over to us for trial.”
Peter shook his head. “Sire, I don’t think that would be a good idea. I don’t think Karantov will do it. He’s not going to put a CoDominium regimental commander up before a mercenary court martial, and if he turns Ciotti over to you, what’s to prevent Sparta from demanding the heads of every CD officer who ever did you harm? As Admiral Forrest says, Ciotti can plead that he had valid orders. Sire, if you do make that request it’ll come better through your government than through me. My advice is that you don’t ask at all.”
“I’ll consider that advice,” Lysander said.
“He’s lost his regiment because of what he did,” Peter Owensford said.
“I suppose. He’s getting off easy. General, what’s the status of that atom bomb?”
“We’re searching,” Owensford said. “Of course we don’t know there is one.”
“But you think there is.”
“I think we can’t take any chances, Majesty. Now we have another problem. Do you have the passwords to your late father’s computer system? In particular, where he kept his codes?”
“Possibly,” Lysander said. “When the fighting started he gave me a disk.”
“We have a long message from Fleet Headquarters that no one seems able to decode,” Owensford said. “We suspect it’s from Grand Admiral Lermontov, in which case your father might be the only one in this system with a key.”
“You don’t?”
“No, sir, nor does Karantov. Whitlock may have one. Or Slater. We’re trying to find them now.”
“Are they missing?”
“Unfortunately,” Owensford said. “When last seen, General Slater and his cadets and instructors were driving a Minetown mob off their campus, and we think Whitlock was with him.”
“You think they’re all right?”
“Yes, Sire,” Peter said. “Hal Slater has been through more battles than anyone on this planet, and they weren’t facing what you call first class opposition.”
“And he’d have code keys you don’t have?”
“It’s possible,” Owensford said. “Lermontov has known Hal nearly as long as he’s known Falkenberg. But our best bet is to see if you can find your father’s codes.”
“All right. I suppose the simplest thing is to start with this disk. Where do you have your code equipment?” Lysander got to his feet and leaned heavily on his cane. “Harv, I can use some help. Let’s go, General.”
* * *
“General, I have someone calling for you. It may be the rebel commander.”
Lysander looked up from the code machine. “Perhaps you should talk to her. On the speaker, please.”
“Yes, Sire. All right, put her on.” He lifted the microphone. “Owensford here.”
“Hiyo, Petie. You be remembering Skilly, I think.”
“I remember you.”
“You sound cold, Petie. Like you don’ like me.”
Owensford made frantic hand signals. The technicians nodded agreement. Keep her talking. “I presume you have a message for me.”
“Sure, I want to know if you wan’ take up that job offer I make you. Or maybe you want to hire me? That’s what you done with Barton after you defeat him, no? So maybe you hire me.”
“Well, we could discuss it,” Owensford said.
There was a long hard laugh. “Why, Petie, you tryin’ to stall me! Lyin’ to me, too. But I don’ be on here long enough for you to trace where I am, Petie, so maybe we ought to talk serious. I guess Jeffi told you about Murasaki’s big surprise.”
“What would that be?’
“Oh, come on, now,” Skilly said. Her chuckle was loud in the handset. “I know you talk to him, because we see him go into that palace, him and that spy chick you send us. So he tol’ you about Murasaki’s bomb, which is why you frantic to get everyone out of Government Square and your Fort. Ever stop to think I know you evacuate those people? Maybe I even know where you are. If I don’ know now, I find out soon enough, and you can’t keep running all the time. Can’t govern no country when you can’t stop long enough to go to the pot.
“Now you think you goin’ find that bomb, or find Skilly, and you maybe right. Maybe right. Skilly down to the triarii now, not many Skilly’s people left, who knows, maybe one turn she in for all that money.”
“So what do you want?’ Owensford asked.
“Skilly want what Niles gets, a ticket off this planet,” she said. “You give me that, I give you the bomb. Murasaki too, if you fast enough to catch him, but I don’ promise Murasaki. He clever and he fast. But you get his bomb.”
“You ask for too much,” Owensford said. “You and Niles aren’t the same case.”
“Yeah, he white ass gentleman,” she said. “But I suppose what you mean is Stora Mine. Skilly sorry about that. Bad thing, but if it end the war, kindness after all. Thought it work, thought North Valley would surrender, but your people tougher than we think. And Baby Prince up there to rally the troops, too. Anyway, that water over the spilled milk. Question now is, maybe you catch Skilly and maybe you don’t, and meanwhile you going to lose a lot of Citizens and a lot of that city, cause Skilly got nothing left to bargain with.”
“We don’t even have a way to get you off-planet,” Owensford said. “Just at the moment, space is controlled by elements of the CD Navy and it’s not certain just who they’re loyal to. They like us some, but they hate you a lot, and I doubt we could talk them into letting you leave Sparta even if we wanted to.”
“Now, Petie, you wouldn’t lie to Skilly, would you? Damn I wish I have one of those gadgets you like so much, but I bet you got your phones jiggered same way I do, filter out all that overtone stuff before it goes out, no? Anyway, I make you one last offer. You take the price off Skilly’s head, and you stop looking for Skilly. Outlaw Skilly, that all right. Skilly take care of herself. Any cop on or off duty shoot Skilly on sight, that all right, it happen anyway. But you don’ send police tracking me. Or Legion either. Skilly sorry about that Stora Mine business, but nothing she can do.”
“We take the price off your head, and you’re no longer officially wanted, but you remain an outlaw, to be dealt with as wolves are.”
“Right. Without that reward, people get tired of looking for Skilly after a while. They hate Skilly, but they get over it, get on with their lives, if they don’ get rich chasing she. Skilly like a better deal, but time getting short. I take that one.”
“And in return?”
“I give you that bomb and the last place I know Murasaki at, and we quits.”
“I have to refer this to His Majesty.”
“Yo. And Petie, you tell His Majesty, Skilly not order anyone to kill his father. That fortunes of war, Dreadful Bride claim him, maybe, but it was nothing deliberate.”
“Right. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
“Don’ take too long,” Skilly said. “And don’ be delaying thinking you track this call. You track it, all right, but when you get there you find it first relay and you got more tracking to do. Skilly can talk until that bomb go off, you not find she that way, but you lose a lot of you city.”
“All right. Be right back.” He turned to Lysander. “Sire, you heard.”
“Yes. I presume she means it.”
“I certainly wouldn’t bet most of the Capital on it being a bluff,” Owensford said. “And that’s exactly what you would be doing.”
“I hate letting her get away,” Lysander said.
“Maybe she won’t.”
“Whatever. All right. I hate this, but I don’t see what else we can do. Tell her I’ll issue the proclamation rescinding the reward, and we’ll both issue orders to our forces not to expend official effort in hunting for her. That’s as soon as we find the bomb, of course.”
“Right.” Owensford activated the communications set. “You got it,” he said. “Reward called off, no official efforts to find you.”
“Legion too,” Skilly said. “Your word on that.”
“Legion too. Our word, mine and His Majesty’s. That’s as soon as we find the bomb.”
“Yah, I figure you do it that way. All right. At the southeast corner of Government Square, keep going southeast you come to the King Jason Hotel. It probably surprise you a lot, but I own that hotel. Well, someone else name on the papers, but I pay for it. The Royal Arms restaurant there, in the basement, there’s a big meat locker. The far wall of that meat locker opens up, there’s another room behind it. You’ll find the bomb in there, and I think you better hurry, I don’t think Murasaki leave much time. That was last place I know him to be, too, but I don’t think he there now.”